Conference rocks::weight_control

419.0. "Measuring body fat - "the dunk"" by LDYBUG::GOLDMAN (Left as an exercise to the reader) Wed Mar 22 1989 20:55

    	There is some discussion going on late in note 380 about "the
    dunk" - a way of measuring body fat.  The following is the text
    about this dunk  - why you should do it, how it's done, etc.  I
    thought I'd start a new note, instead of cluttering up Joel's! :-)

    	I've done it, so if anyone has any questions about the
    procedure, feel free to write and ask.

    	Amy
    **********************************************************************

                             FIT OR FAT SYSTEM

WHAT IS UNDERWATER WEIGHING?

Underwater weighing is an accurate method of determining the percentage of
fat in the body.  Unlike an ordinary land scale that measures total body
weight only, underwater weighing tells you the amount of fat weight and
lean body weight (bones, muscles, and organs) you have.  For example, a
woman weighing 133 pounds is tested.  Our weighing method shows htat she is
26% fat or that 34.5 pounds of her total weight is fat and 98.5 pounds is
lean body mass.

WHY IS IT IMPORTANT TO KNOW MY PERCENTAGE OF BODY FAT?

Fat, not weight, is the crucial factor in determining fitness. You cannot
know how fat you are by your weight.  Appearances can be deceiving and
pounds misleading.  For example, some slim people have relatively high
percentages of body fat, while some heavy people actually hve low body fat.

HOW IS THE TEST DONE?

Although the test requires special equipment, the procedure itself is quite
simple.  You enter the water tank, (it is 3 feet deep) seat yourself on the
chair, exhale and lower your head under water.  During the few seconds you
are under water, your weight is recorded from the overhead scale.

HOW CAN I USE THIS INFORMATION?

If your percentage of body fat is higher than desirable for good health (
15% for males and 22% for females), you will want to find out how to lower
the fat content of your diet and plan an aerobic exercise program designed
to increase your lean body mass and decrease your body fat.

WHAT IS THE CONNECTION BETWEEN BODY FAT AND DISEASE?

Fat is implecated in the major diseases that strike Americans:
hypertension, heart disease, diabetes, and cancers of the colon, breast and
prostrate.  By decreasing your body's fat level, you will reduce your
susceptibility to these diseases.

WHERE CAN I OBTAIN MORE INFORMATION OR BE TESTED?

FIT OR FAT SYSTEM offers underwater weighings to individuals on a monthly
clinic basis and to groups on a contractual basis.  Tests are conducted by
Bob and Anita Breeze,  Health Club owners and Covert Bailey's� New England
Licensees for his FIT OR FAT SYSTEM.  An underwater weighing clinic
provides computerized analysis fo results including individualized
recommendations for exercise and diet and a question and answer session to
be sure everyone understands their results.  To learn more about the
procedure or to schedule an appointment for underwater weighing call Bob or
Anita Breeze at (508) 481-4877.



�Covert Bailey is a nutritional biochemist who provides educational
programs on nutrition and exercise.  His two best selling books, FIT OR FAT
and THE TARGET DIET describe, in simple language, how to achieve and
maintain fitness by combining aerobic activity with a low fat diet.

    	The latest issue of Hippocrates Magazine (July/August) has
    an article on the various body fat tests.  The author went and had
    her body fat tested by four different methods - near-infrared
    interactance (the Futrex-5000 Fitness and Body Fat Analyzer),
    calipers, underwater weighing and bioelectrical impedance.  She
    got numbers ranging from 16% to 21%.  The article discusses the
    accuracies/inaccuracies of the various tests, and is pretty good 
    at explaining how they're done.  Here is the "summary box" from
    the article:

    UNDERWATER WEIGHING:  Accurate within 2% provided that the lung
    test is included.  Omitting it may introduce an error of up to 5%.
    May be unreliable for postmenopausal women who have lost bone
    mass.  Cost: $25 - $45.

    CALIPERS:  Accurate within 3 to 4% - if the tester has some
    university training, knows exactly where to place the calipers,
    and measures at least three sites.  Not the best test for obese
    people, because the additional fat can make it difficult to test
    the right spots.  Cost: around $15.

    BIOELECTRICAL IMPEDANCE:  Accurate within 3 to 6%.  Should be done
    before, not after, a sweaty workout, because the equations that
    calculate fat presume the body contains normal amounts of fluid.
    May not work for people over age 79 because the machines are
    calibrated primarily for young adults.  Cost:  Usually around $20;
    may range from $5 to $50.

    NEAR-INFRARED INTERACTANCE:  Quick and simple, but the method's
    accuracy has been questioned because it estimates total body fat
    with only one test.  Cost:  Usually $4 to $25, up to $110.

    	Amy

   Interested in finding out your body fat percentage?

   One of the owners of the now-closed Anita Roberts salon in Marlboro still 
   does body fat composition tests using the submersion method.  You get 
   submerged in a 350 gallon tub of water and weighed underwater.  Then your 
   underwater weight and regular weight are both used to compute the 
   percentage of body fat.   The idea is that fat will tend to make you 
   float and therefore affect your underwater weight.  The submerssion
   method is the most accurate measure of the percentage of body fat.
   .0 has more information about the test.
    
   The guy who does the test is Bob Breeze.  He is a licensee of Covert Baley,
   the writer of the excellent books "Fit or Fat" and "The Fit or Fat Diet"
   and the inventor of the submersion method for measuring body fat.  Bob is 
   planning to do a dunk in the next few weeks if he can get enough people who 
   are interested.  The rate is $30 for Digital folks and $35 for others.  For 
   more information call (508)366-0414.

   Adam
  

	Thanks, Adam!

	I was wondering if they were still running them... perhaps
	I'll go and see how far off I am from my last dunk.

	Karen